| Summary: | 碩士 === 輔仁大學 === 博物館學研究所碩士班 === 102 === During the 1900s, museum theories and practices were influenced by the mass communication theory, which regards museums as communication systems. The assumption of museums was that by perfecting the medium of communication (the exhibition or the exhibit), a successful way of conveying messages would take place when visitors visit. However, are messages conveyed successfully?
The purpose of this study is to explore what problems exist between the source and the receiver based on the museum communication model which states that “exhibits convey messages to visitors”. Researchers have long been trying to understand what are referred to as “noise and distraction” in each part of the linear communication process through multiple perspectives, but there have been few mentions of the message transmission between the visitors and the exhibits. As such, this study is a qualitative approach to learning more about the influence of the content of text through a case study of the NPM’s Jadeite Cabbage with Insects by participant observations, interviews and exhibit text analysis.
The results show that visitors rely heavily on the messages delivered and the interpretations given by the museum in order to understand the exhibit. The case study finds that visitors glean limited learning from the exhibits if the messages, the exhibit texts or the interpretations (1) cannot deliver the real meaning or are inaccurate, and if (2) the information of icon is described inadequately in the context of cultural history. This is why the appropriateness of exhibit texts is crucial for understanding an exhibit.
This study is mainly based on the conclusion of the present research and the experiences learned from this case study. It offers suggestions on museum interpretation. First, museums should avoid specific motives for over-interpreting exhibits, such as over-emphasizing the value of cultural heritage or the benefits for publicity. Second, although the texts enhance visitor understanding of the abstract meaning of the exhibits, it also gives room for providing inaccurate information in the content of texts. Third, texts should offer more information on symbols, icon and symbolized meaning, dating back to the context of history. For future researches, this study suggests to examine more closely how visitors interpret an exhibit and the exhibit texts provided based on existing visual analysis theories, and to further explore the difficulties that may arise when visitors attempt to interpret the displayed objects of an exhibit.
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